Ficlet: Challenge

Title: ChallengeAuthor: DaylynFandom: Sherlock HolmesPairing: Holmes/Watson Rating: G Disclaimer: Not mine, although actually in the public domain. No profit is intended.

Summary: Watson considers his relationship with Holmes.

Author’s Note: Happy Birthday to the_callum and kathie_d and to any other April Fools out there! I woke up with this in my head as a birthday gift. It’s… um… a bit schmaltzy.

ChallengeBy Daylyn

I knew that being the lover of the world's only consulting detective would be a challenge. Mr. Sherlock Holmes was, if nothing else, rather fickle when it came to emotions. He would ignore me for days on end, bark a command at me and expect instant obedience, or leave me awaiting his arrival for hours at a time while he single-mindedly searched for some obscure clue on some obscure case.

The benefits of the relationship, however, far outweighed the difficulties. There were times when Holmes would spontaneously grab my arm, or introduce me as his friend and partner, or smile at me with an unexpected warmth. Those were the times when Holmes would convey his feelings far more effectively than any words he was never able to utter.

In the early days, I doubted my place in his heart and sincerely questioned my sanity in pursuing an amorous connection. His oftentimes abrupt and cold manner would leave me privately nursing a wounded ego and an even more wounded heart. Yet I came to realize that it was Holmes’ little gestures—acts which only I was ever a party to—that truly epitomized his sentiments. A hand on my shoulder, offering comfort. An unexpected rest when my old war wounds would ache. A warm brandy brought to my chair when I was too weary to rise. A kiss in a dark corner. These actions, and so many hundreds of others, indicated my friend’s true regard for me.

It was a challenge being the lover of the world’s only consulting detective, but the rewards were worth it, for only I glimpsed Holmes’ soul, filled as it was with pain, wonder, beauty, and, most importantly, love.